Chewelah Wrestling Looks to Extend Legacy Under New Head Coach

“When you drive into town and see the sign, ‘Welcome to Chewelah,’ what else do you see? State champion wrestlers,” Powers said. “Since 1984, Chewelah has had 115 state participants, 67 top eight finishers, 23 finalists, 14 individual state championships, and seven top 10 team finishes. The culture runs deep in this part of the valley. We as coaches plan to build upon that legacy and the result will be a group of young men and women who are hardworking, respectful, disciplined, relentless, coachable, and a great representation of who we are as a community.”

Chewelah graduated five seniors last season – all state competitors – but returns a mix of state veterans, upperclass strength, and young talent.

“We have 25 athletes out this year,” Powers said. “Leading the way, we have four seniors, including 2025 state finalist Dakota Katzer and sixth-place medalist Payton Bailey, 10 juniors, including seventh place state medalist Titan Tapia, two sophomores including state participant Trevin Stauffer, five freshmen, and four eighth-graders wrestling up.”

With that kind of lineup, Powers said expectations inside the program are high.

“Wrestlers to watch will be all our returning state participants,” Powers said. “But I believe any of those 25 athletes we have out are capable of achieving great things. In this sport, your attitude determines your altitude.”

Chewelah will again face a competitive NE2B schedule, with familiar rivals setting the bar.

“Strong matchups in our league will be Freeman, Newport and Liberty,” Powers said. “We will see all of the NE2B this year in the postseason league duel meet tournament. We will be ready, and the great thing about this sport, anything can happen.”

Last season offered a perfect example.

“We placed fifth in the league last year but then, at the state tournament, passed all those teams and placed fifth in the state,” Powers said. “It’s all about preparation, and who’s ready to wrestle that given day.”

This season marks Powers’ first as head coach at Jenkins High School, though he is far from a newcomer to the sport.

“I was an assistant under legendary head coach Kim Hogan last year,” he said. “Prior to coaching and living in Chewelah I have been involved year round in the sport for 27 years, both as athlete and coach.”

His personal résumé is extensive – from being a 6x WSWA Folkstyle/Freestyle/Greco Roman state medalist to qualifying for Fargo Nationals, to returning after a long break and placing second at the Washington State Open. He has coached at Hudson’s Bay High School and two elite wrestling clubs in southwest Washington under national hall-of-fame coaching.

Wrestling, Powers said, is in his blood.

“I was born into a wrestling family,” he said. “My father Eric Powers was a 1982 Washington state champion, freestyle and greco all-American, and D1 wrestler at Washington State University, and my uncle, Mitch Powers, was a two-time Washington state finalist, freestyle national champion, 1983 junior college national champion for Phoenix JC and D1 wrestler at University of Washington and the University of Iowa.”

Powers and Colville coaches are also working to launch a renewed regional rivalry.

“We and Colville are excited to bring a long time rivalry of the area to the forefront,” he said. “With the first annual ‘395 Throwdown’ classic rivalry duel. The winner each year will be presented with a street sign style plaque to hang in their wrestling room.”

For Powers, the program is about more than wins, medals, or even tradition – it’s about shaping young athletes through one of the most demanding sports there is.

“Wrestling is more than just a sport,” he said. “It’s a constant process of self-reflection and self-correction, paired with an unwavering belief that through obsessive hard work and discipline, anything is possible. Wrestling is a way of life.”